The Cox & Feret, the reference book of Bordeaux and its wines,of 1908, mentions Château Bellevue-Gazin and states that, at the time, it was rated a “Premier Cru Bourgeois” in recognition of the quality of its “terroir” and its success on the market place. However, the property had over the years slipped into hibernation and was recently used as an alternative education centre.

 

Those vineyards, used by the centre for training, were in excellent conditions yet other parts were relatively neglected. The soil had been allowed to stagnate and to be bled of its natural fauna and flora and other inherent components. It was a brave move to buy just before the 2003 vintage, with no previous experience of winegrowing and winemaking. However, where there is a will, there is a way !

2004 CHÂTEAU BELLEVUE – GAZIN
COLOR : Bright, deep, dense, ruby – red purple, deep garnet purple reflections, but wine still very profound and young
NOSE : Subdued. Black fruit, especially blackberry, black currant. Minty tones. Very attractive and delicate aromas.
PALATE : Minty notes provoke an energetic mouthfeel and stimulate the taste buds. Lovely deep fruit – blackberries. Hint of eucalyptus. Big and powerful wine. Tannins consequential but well managed and with firm, rich potential for evolution and mellowing in future. Firm structure.Very good finish. Quite refreshing on tongue all the way through.

2003 CHÂTEAU BELLEVUE – GAZIN
COLOR : Deep, dense, profound purple black, purple rim
NOSE : Minty attack. Rosemary, thyme and herbal notes. Fresh and clean attack. Rich, black fruit, smoky with a hint of delicate liquorice.
PALATE : Lingering freshness throughout. Minty. Rich and ripe black fruit. Chocolate tones. Dense and powerful flavours balanced by the fruity, juiciness of the fresh acidity. The fruit is very ripe. Firm and powerful structure without becoming heavy.
The tannins are forceful, but fleshy and as yet granular, but showing signs of smoothing out. Exceptionally fruit driven for a 2003 and especially for a first vintage by these new proprietors. Minty and herbal to the end. Fruit finish, whilst remaining forceful. This wine will develop and mature well, but just escapes over extraction and over concentration. Nevertheless, very well made wine already procuring great enjoyment and tasting pleasure.

If you happen to have some, keep it jealously, if not you may miss a precious opportunity ! In short, a delicious glass of wine – imposing and refreshing, all in one.
Alain and Anne Sophie Lancereau both followed demanding professions in Paris. He is a construction engineer, specialising in water treatment, and has lived and worked a large part of his life in Canada.
She hails from the North and hold a degree in Art History and Languages. She is very artistic and excellent at pottery decoration and sculpture, of which there are several examples around the château.One grandfather was a winegrower in Bergerac and the other, a wine importer in Belgium. Therefore, wine has always been an integral part of their lives and their dream has been cherished and its realisation prepared over many years, with tasting tuition and one whole year of research to get to grips with their new profession. This is the project of a lifetime.

It is a vision of wine as a vector of conviviality,which has inspired the creation of accommodation facilities evolving around wine, art and creativity.

 

The objective is to make fine wine, to receive visitors in charming and comfortable surroundings,with a splendid view to boot, and to share their love for wine, their property and their experience with their guests and visitors.Upon arriving in 2003, the Lancereau couple had no preconceived idea or prejudices. Alain Lancereau is a scientist and therefore rational in his approach, whereas Anne Sophie Lancereau adds the artistic, hedonistic touch.

 

They were privileged to make the right contacts, which could help them to consolidate their dream. They decided upon a strategy of “hands on” and this they have since refinedand adapted as the vines also improve.


“Everything we have ever achieved has been through our own hard work and this offers us great liberty and tranquillity of mind”, remarks Alain. Their philosophy is to make authentic wine with the support of modern technology. Enormous technical investment was needed to transform and to renovate the installations to correspond to the level of quality that the Lancereau family count intended to make.

 

 

Alain & Anne Sophie Lancereau have a near obsessional desire to produce great quality wine, and the only way to achieve this is to produce excellent quality grapes !Truly a “prime hillside” property (as per its appellation) Château Bellevue-Gazin profits from a splendid position, dominating the heights above Blaye and Plassac, overlooking the Gironde River, with the vines in continuous parcels across the rolling hills of the Blayais.

The original 9.5 hectares vineyard is in one contiguous block, but the new proprietors rapidly realised that this was not enough to achieve their objective. Thus Château Lers Loumède, in close proximity, with 5.7 hectares, also in one block, was bought, allowing for a better return on their investment.
The same grape varieties are planted and the same equipment can be used. Grape varieties : 70% Merlot, 20% Malbec (called Côt locally), 10% Cabernet Sauvignon with an average age of 40 years. 2 hectares will be replanted with Petit Verdot. Density is 5,500 vine stocks per hectare. The very old Malbec produces a minute crop, but of excellent quality!

The soil needed serious, and in depth, attention. This will only be rectified over a period of time. Soil analysis with the analysis of soil cores resulted in a detailed, scientific report. An organic compost was spread on all parcels and the soil is tilled every second row.In order to redress the root system deep ploughing also takes place.
The soil is mostly composed of calcareous clay and some of the slopes are quite steep. Environmental friendly cultivation has lead to a revival of the life giving micro-organisms and the ecosystem. Grassing between rows and weeding under vines.Great attention is also given to the vine stocks itself. In order to treat the vines efficiently and avoid unnecessary treatments Château Bellevue-Gazin is very attentive to the agricultural early warning and risk information system.

Appropriate canopy management is also forming an important part of the improvement process.The vintage is by hand and by a team of friends and relations, including their four children, from Paris. The vines used to be incited to maximum crop, a policy totally contrary to the Lancereau couples vision.

The crop size is now reduced to some 18 hectolitre/hectare, depending upon vintage. The grapes are destalked, without pressing, and spend up to 8 days cold macerating in temperature controlled cement vats.

 

Then, the slow alcoholic fermentation of between 15 – 20 days. Each vat is treated individually and the vintage guides the details of the vinification. The wine is pumped over regularly and the skins and pips punched down.

 

A vertical, cage press is used for slow and very delicate pressing and the wine is run off into barrel, of which 50% is new oak, 30% barrels of one wine and 20% two.
Here is matures over about 12 months, depending upon the wine. The malolactic fermentation takes place in barrel and the lees are stirred. Out of respect for the wine, racking is not systematic.

 

Egg white is used for the fining and thereafter the wine is rested for one month before bottling. The blending takes place just before bottling. An outside bottling company is used and closely monitored to ensure quality control.

The consulting oenologist, Athanaze Fakorellis, who liked the projectfrom the start when he was first approached and, since 2006, Olivier Dauga has been the consultant.“We have lost none of our joy and enthusiasm, we intend to make natural wine, which will give pleasure to our clients and to ourselvesand will attain the highest possible level of quality that Château Bellevue-Gazin is capable of”, smilingly declare Alain and Anne Sophie Lancereau, admiringly gazing over their vines and the river lower down the slopes, their passion shining from their eyes.

The production is still relatively small – in 2004, only 20,000 bottles.The target market is restaurants and, through Alain Lancereau’s old business contact network, they have penetrated the market.

Château Bellevue-Gazin is available in and around Boston and Chicago.Other wines produced : Château Lers Loumède and ChâteauBellevue-Gazin, Cuvée Les Baronnets, the Second wine. The vinification and the blend of the latter is the same, but the wine is intended to be enjoyed more rapidly, rather than being layed down like the First wine.

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